


Land of the Rising Sun

by orphan_account



Category: Banana Fish (Anime & Manga)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Ash and Eiji go to Japan!, Fluff and Angst, I decided that the canon doesnt matter anymore, M/M, Romantic Comedy, i dont know her
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-12-02
Updated: 2018-12-05
Packaged: 2019-09-05 16:25:52
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,903
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16814242
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: Ash was scared of but one thing in this world- and that was pumpkins....But meeting Eiji’s family was up there alongside it.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> the canon ending cant stop me because i cant read

Airports were, admittedly, never really a place Ash felt particularly safe. There were too many open spaces and wide windows, too many security guards and cameras. It left him with a great sense of unease in the pit of his stomach that didn’t go away until he was out of site of the place.  
Which is why he feels like he positively might die when he and Eiji hear that their flight to Japan has been delayed by two hours. The woman on the intercom almost sounded mocking when she’d announced it- like she knew full well how much Ash hated this.  
Perhaps she was in on this- perhaps she was undercover as a flight attendant send to assassinate Ash once and for all-  
“Ash, calm down.” Eiji’s voice, as per usual, brings Ash out of the thunderclouds of his mind and places him gently back on Earth. “It’s only two hours.” He continues, looking a little bothered by the slight hindrance in their perfectly mapped out plan. “It’ll give me time to tell you more about my family~!” 

Eiji Okumura was never one to overshare about his personal life- but comparing him to Ash- it was almost as if he kept all of their family albums with him at all times.  
He’d made the decision to take Ash over to Japan on a whim almost. It had come to him one day when the pair of them had been hiding out in that apartment Ash had bought. Eiji remembers telling Ash a little bit about his sister, about his mother and his father, his eyes had lit up with such an amazing jade when Eiji had spoken… The soft voice Ash had used when he said he’d like to visit there someday. It was something that Eiji had on repeat in his mind in the quieter moments of his day.  
He knew they had to go.  
It wasn’t going to be easy- what with Ash being a national criminal but with a few pulled strings and the right connections, there wasn’t anything the pair of them couldn’t do if they were together.  
Ash sighs into his seat, looking a little more forlorn than he usually did (which was a feat in itself.) His fingers begin to absentmindedly trace the armrests pattern as he looked down at his feet. It was a nervous tick that he didn’t even pick up he had.  
Eiji, however, did. He smiles absentmindedly at the man beside him and, with a delicacy only he was allowed to give onto Ash, places a hand on Ash’s fidgety one. 

Eiji’s hand was always warm, no matter where they were- it always had a source of heat to it. It wasn’t just his hand either, it was just Eiji in general. He was a personal space heater- when they’d first started sharing a bed, Ash really hadn’t anticipated how different that was to sleeping alone.  
But when Eiji Okumura, a well known cover hog decided to lie on top of him like a duvet- he’d really felt it.  
And though it was a little hard to breathe at times, he wouldn’t have it any other way. Because when Eiji wasn’t at his side when he slept now, the bed felt too big- too empty, there was an Eiji shaped hole where he was supposed to be and Ash absolutely detested it.  
Which was why it was important that they both go to Japan. It was important that Ash met the people who raised this man that he so wholeheartedly couldn’t live without because he could see how vital it was that Eiji introduce them. He’d seen the way he’d spoken about them, so much love in those dark eyes of his- it was mesmerising to watch.  
He wondered sometimes if that’s how Eiji looked when talked about him, and every time it filled him with these ridiculous butterflies that made his cheeks flush infuriatingly with fuschia. 

Two hours. Two more hours. He looks over at Eiji now, he thinks about how many times they’d saved each other over the course of their meeting. Two hours was nothing he couldn’t handle. One-hundred and twenty minutes until they leave. One-hundred and twenty minutes and then the ground the Ash stood on would be miles below him- far enough away for him to look past the blood stains on the concrete that he’d left there. 

When they finally board their flight, Eiji is beginning to fall asleep on Ash’s shoulder. It was a late trip to start off with- adding on an extra two hours to that had really had done a number on Eiji. He was a notorious early riser with a sleep schedule that rivalled a grandma- being awake and conscious at an hour nearing midnight was damn near impossible for him to achieve.  
Nevertheless, as they took off from the International airport just south of where they’d begun, the pair of them had shared a moment of clarity under the stars of night. Eiji had made sure to keep awake for that moment.  
Watching as the city lights of the place Ash had ruled over for what felt like eternity faded into the blissful abyss of nothingness. Ash had grabbed onto Eiji’s hand so tight that moment that it would surely leave a mark, but still he didn’t make a sound.  
Ash remarked a quiet goodbye over New York City for the moment- and silently, rather selfishly, hoped to never see it’s cruel face again.


	2. Chapter 2

Even before they touched down in Izumo, Ash could very much tell that Japan was nothing like New York City. 

It was strange, Ash supposed, perhaps he’d expected the bustling lights of Tokyo to stretch throughout the whole country. He wonders idly if Eiji thought the same thing when he’d first arrived in New York.

Izumo looked like something Ash would occasionally see in the samurai movies of his childhood. The sweeping Japanese roofs decorating the house streets, the delicate front gardens filled with elegant greens and beiges. It was so different to everything Ash had seen in his home country. Perhaps he’d grown so used to graffiti-laden bricks walls and subway stations that he wasn’t able to see the beauty in his own city.

Or perhaps he’d discovered too many of the horrors abundant there that he couldn’t unsee it.

Silently, he wonders what was hiding under the pristine streets of Eiji’s hometown- but perhaps he was just a pessimist. 

Ash takes in the details of every house they pass, looking at the walls- the delicate colour of their paint and the people living amongst it. The taxi was going too fast for him to get a proper look at each and every one intricately- and it makes his nerves a little worse.

“Hey, Eiji?” 

“Mhm?” 

“Do you think they’ll like me?” 

Eiji laughs at that, “that’s what your worried about?” He brushes it off with a bright smile, “I already told you- my mother and my little sister are going to go crazy over you.’ 

“Mmm… But what about your father?”   
Eiji’s smile dims a little at that, “my father-” he tries to choose his words correctly. Ash knew it couldn’t be easy, having to think in one language and speak in another. He’d figured out first hand how it could make your head hurt something serious. “He’s a very reserved man. I’m not quite sure what he’s thinking sometimes…” Eiji doesn’t say it in a weary fashion, not particularly at least. “Ah, I guess he’s a bit like you in that way.” 

The car stops before Ash is ready, right in front of a house that was similar to all the other houses in the street and yet somehow different. It was a decent size, properly one of the biggest ones he’d seen so far. Eiji had described it as traditional and Ash could see why that would have been the easiest way to put it. A beautiful front garden greets them like an old friend and Eiji’s eyes light up with reminiscence. 

There’s three people waiting out the front of the house for them. 

A stern faced man, about the same height as Eiji, with slightly greying hair and glasses. A short, plump woman with an enormous sunny smile- Ash could see where Eiji had gotten his from and, last, a young teenage girl with a dark jumper on, her dark hair in two pigtails. She looked almost exactly like Eiji, it was a little haunting- the resemblance. 

Eiji, like the airhead he sometimes was, rushes out of the still moving car- leaving Ash in the dust. Yelling out exclamations entirely in Japanese as he ran towards the three people. Ash had tried to learn a little bit of his language before they’d come, but Eiji was speaking so quickly that it was a little incomprehensible. He picked up words like  _ ‘mom’ _ and  _ ‘dad’  _ as well as _ ‘Fuyuko, are you wearing my sweater?’  _ but aside from that, Ash was a little lost. Golzine hadn’t had the good sense to teach him Japanese, he’d only learnt French, Spanish, Italian and Chinese. A shame really. When he’d voiced his woes to Eiji he’d just gotten a pout ‘oh no, poor you, you can only speak _ five  _ languages perfectly.’ Eiji may not be entirely fluent in English- but Ash would be damned if he said the man hadn’t perfectly mastered sarcasm in it. 

Eiji tackles his sister first, a giant hug that envelopes her almost entirely. That was one thing different about them, Ash supposed, Eiji was a lot taller than his tiny sister- and his mother for that matter. 

Watching Eiji hug his family for dear life, Ash can’t help but feel a little bit like he was an intruder- as he got out of the car with a tentative nervousness he tried to keep focused on not being nervous.. But it was all for naught, he  _ was  _ nervous. 

He’d faced assassins, murderers, international criminals, warlords- fucking  _ everyone  _ evil in this world and he’d kept his cool.

But now? 

“Ash!” Eiji’s voice calls him over and with a wave he gestures over to his family. “Come meet everyone!” 

Ash swears under his breath and steels himself. Keeping his face neutral as he sauntered over to where they were all situated. They all look at him with varying forms of intrigue. Eiji  _ did _ tell him that Izumo didn’t get a tonne of tourists from America visiting.

“Eiji-Nii-Chan, this is your boyfriend, yes?” These are the words Fuyuko Okumura first speaks, her English accented- just like Eiji’s, but still rather good. Fuyuko was soft spoken, just like her older brother- but had more of a manic excitement in her expression that mildly worried Ash. 

Eiji sputters, looking at Ash. “Uh…” 

“Yeah, I’m his boyfriend.” 

Fuyuko makes a noise in the back of her throat that borders on a whine and a shrill squeal of excitement. “Aah, mou~ Onii-Chan, how did you land him? He’s the most handsome person I’ve seen in the world.” 

“Hey~! What’s that supposed to mean?” Eiji asks, his iconic pout back on his face. 

“It’s like pitting Natto and Katsudon with each other- there’s no competition!” 

Ash raises his eyebrows, “you hate Natto?” 

Fuyuko nods furiously, sticking out her tongue, “it’s disgusting.” 

Ash looks at Eiji, smug. 

Eiji pulls a face at him. 

Perhaps this wouldn’t be as terrifying as he thought.

**Author's Note:**

> hmu @pearliegrimm on tumblr ;)


End file.
